


return soul;

by tatersalad5001



Series: return false; [3]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Agender Chara, Gen, Non-Binary Frisk, Post-Undertale Soulless Pacifist Route, Reader Is Frisk, Soulless Undertale Pacifist Route, Spoilers - Undertale Genocide Route, Spoilers - Undertale Pacifist Route
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-13
Updated: 2016-10-13
Packaged: 2018-08-22 07:01:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8276977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tatersalad5001/pseuds/tatersalad5001
Summary: The barrier has been broken. You made your choice long ago, and now everyone knows it's not you in your human body. Both you and the human find yourselves explaining your own actions; only one of you tells the whole truth. Surprisingly, it's the one who truly cares about everyone else. (Sequel to return true;)





	

**Author's Note:**

> I love this Frisk and this Chara too much, had to write more. Definitely will write more in the future. The series is "technically" complete, and will stay that way, but it's not the end of content. It's just that return null and return true were the core part of the series.

"Please, wake up. This is all just a bad dream."

You and Chara both woke up at the same time. You were laying side by side. For a moment, you had forgotten you weren't physically there, until you tried to push yourself up off the ground.

Chara, in your body, sat up and looked at everyone, all their friends gathered around them. Forcing back a yawn, it was clear they were still processing the words that had woken them. You were, as well. Had it all just been some dream that the two of them had shared? Did everything with Asriel really happen? It wouldn't be the first time the two of you had experienced the same dream.

Toriel offered her hand, and Chara took it, allowing her to help them stand up. They looked up at her, and she stared back at them. Both held the same expression on their face, looking to the other for answers.

She hesitated, before being the first to speak. "...Chara...is it really you, my child?" she asked, her voice quivering.

They gasped, their mouth gaping. It wasn't what they'd expected her to say. You hadn't, either. How did she suddenly know? "You...you know?" they mumbled. "How..."

Their mother frowned at them, not unkindly, merely...concerned. "I am not sure myself," she confessed. "I don't know what happened after the flower arrived. None of us do. The next thing we remembered was that the barrier was broken, and we...we all knew who you were. But more concerning to me..." Tears filled her eyes. "My child, how were you able to come back?"

For a moment, you wondered how that was possible, for her to know without being told. But memories of confronting Asriel came flooding back...

_"Since you told me it's you, everyone's...they're all going to know who you are," Asriel murmured into Chara's shirt, both embraced in a long, much needed hug. "I'm sorry."_

_"It's okay." They sighed, their eyes closed. "It's probably better this way. It'll be hard at first, but...it'll be easier in the long run."_

_Both were silent for some time, before Chara broke the silence._

_"Do you...want me to tell them about you?"_

_"No." Asriel shook his head. "I don't...I want to be remembered like this. I want to be remembered as me. When I'm Flowey...I'm not me. And I want 'Asriel' and 'Flowey' to be separate. I don't want anyone else to know. I just want to be remembered...like this."_

_"Okay." Chara reached up to ruffle some of the fur on Asriel's head. "I won't. I promise."_

"I...um..." They bit their lip and looked over to you, eyes wide. You just shrugged. It wasn't really your place to offer advice, or give suggestions, not anymore. It was their spotlight now, whether they liked it or not. They were the one who wanted you to suffer the consequences of your actions, and you were. No one else could even see you. Now they had to suffer theirs. Their eyes flared up before they forced themselves to take a breath and calm down. They looked pointedly away from you.

"I...it's probably obvious, but this isn't my body," they mumbled.

"Whose...uh..." Everyone, including yourself, looked over at Alphys. "...W-whose body is it, then?" She frowned, wiping some sweat off the scales on her face. "H-how did you end up in a-another body...?"

"I'm sure we'll figure out everything," Toriel assured her. "We should let them finish."

"No, it's okay." Chara smiled gently up at Alphys. "I don't mind being asked. It'll probably make the most sense to you, anyway..." They ran a hand through their hair, looking away again. "This body...belongs to someone named Frisk. They're...they were the last human to fall down here."

"FRISK...INTERESTING NAME, FOR A HUMAN," Papyrus commented.

"pap, you only know the name of one other human," Sans whispered.

"THAT DOESN'T MAKE IT ANY LESS INTERESTING."

"I think you would've liked them, Papyrus," Chara told him. "And maybe they'd like you, too. It would've been nice if you could have met them."

"I AGREE!" He grinned. "BUT WHY COULDN'T I?"

They stopped for a moment, considered their words carefully, before speaking. "They...when they fell into the Ruins...they died."

You raised your eyebrows.

"They didn't survive the fall," they repeated, "but their body was full of determination. Enough to wake up...what little of me there was left. And without realizing, I kinda...took over."

You snorted. Really? That's how they were going to explain it? Wow. They acted all high and mighty, hellbent on stopping you, but they weren't really much better. You both lied. You both tried to commit murder, even if only one of you was successful.

"And even though you didn't know who I was, you were so nice to me..." Chara continued. A smile flickered onto their face. "It meant so much to me, and I'll never forget it...and I wanted so much to return the favor."

"Oh, my child..." Toriel scooped them into a hug. "Just by coming back to us, you have done more than we could ever ask of you."

Chara smiled, and hugged her back. The two stayed like that for a long while. And not long after, everyone decided to go up and see the surface for the first time, now that the barrier was broken.

As the human walked towards the surface, past where the barrier had been, you were about to follow them. But a voice called out to you, and you stopped.

"You surprise me."

You turned around, exasperation on your face. And of course, there he was, the Mystery Man. Scattered across time and space, he was just as much here as anywhere. It meant little; you were the only one who would be able to see him.

"After living through the same range of time over and over," he went on, "this is the ending you have chosen."

The ending was never important. It never mattered. You just never wanted to return to the surface. Though, after awhile, you had to admit experimentation became a factor as well.

"Nonetheless, it is still a surprise. You've more than proven that you care for no one other than yourself. And yet the final ending is the one best for everyone but yourself."

You shrugged. It wasn't really your choice anymore, was it? You gave that up when you gave up your soul. You weren't in control, you couldn't pick the ending. That was Chara's decision. How things ended, how things continued on, if things started over.

"I wonder about that."

You cocked an eyebrow.

"It is certainly the child who is in control. They decide the ending. But I don't believe that's the end-all to it," Gaster elaborated. "The ball is in your court, as they say. They control the body's actions, but the timeline is still yours. If you really wanted to, I am certain you would be able to reset it all."

Reset it all...

"It is still your choice. And that, child, is why you surprise me," he concluded. "You have every opportunity to reset, but we're still here. You still get to pick the ending, and yet this is the last ending I would think that you'd pick."

You rolled your eyes. He must be deaf. You already said the ending was never important. They can pick any one that they want, you don't care.

"They're going back to the surface, the one thing you were trying to avoid."

This is different.

"Oh?" he seemed bemused. "How so?"

You're not the human that will actually live back up there. You're not the human that will have to face humanity again. No one will know you're even there. It'll be much easier, much more tolerable, going back this way, you think.

"I see." Gaster nodded. "That reasoning seems...rather weak, but I will not invalidate it."

You shrugged. It doesn't matter. Because more than any of that, you're honestly curious.

"Curious, you say?"

Everything only worked out in this way because you wanted to something new, something different. This was something new, something different. And that was somethin you'd never stopped longing for. There had never been an ending where you went back to the surface, or where you lived with monsters, brought them back to the surface, saved them all. You wanted to see how this all would go. It would be interesting, and keep you interested for quite some time. You were almost looking forward to it.

"Ah." The doctor smiled. "It's not out of any sentimentality or desire for the best ending. It's simply something new to you. That makes much more sense."

You nodded, and turned around to follow the human, along with their friends, up to the surface. You smiled softly as you went.

See you soon, Dr. Gaster. You wished him well.

**Author's Note:**

> Frisk.getSoul() == null;  
> Chara.getSoul() == true;  
> Asriel.getSoul() == false;


End file.
